Brianna completed her PhD at Deakin University in October 2015. Her thesis evaluated the effect of different ambient temperatures on firefighters' work performance and physiology, by having firefighters perform simulated work tasks in various ambient conditions.
It was observed that participants safely performed the same amount of work during both hot (33°C) and cold (18°C) temperate conditions. This is likely due to the intermittent nature of the work, frequent task rotation, and increased fluid consumption in hot conditions. However, participants were unable to maintain their work output in very hot conditions (45°C), and displayed significantly elevated heart rates and core body temperatures, despite doubling their fluid consumption.
Brianna’s thesis is available here.
Student project
